The Love of an Angel
by emebalia
Summary: Tag to 8x22 but no spoilers. The Nephilim didn't come out of nowhere, she had parents. A love story around pistachio ice cream, elephants and the love of his life. Gabriel/OFC, nothing explicit but we have to get a baby out of this somehow, pre-series.
1. Chapter 1

**The Love of an Angel**

Gabriel first saw her in a little zoo in the outskirts of a small town somewhere in Louisiana. Nothing special about it, the zoo he meant, but they made the best pistachio ice cream he'd ever tasted and he'd tried a lot all over the world but this little booth in this little zoo made the best. So Gabriel popped in whenever he felt the craving for some green, creamy sin in a cone and sat on a bench near the elephants' compound to enjoy the pistachio flavored goodness.

That was where he first saw her. She was shoveling elephant dung into a wheelbarrow. From the distance she could easily be mistaken for a man with the green overall and the cap over her short hair but Gabriel's view wasn't limited to what met the eye. She handled the shovel with ease, had built up muscles from the hard work. Not pretty in a classic way and she didn't wear make-up which would have been impractical considering her work, however, there was something about her. Maybe in her eyes or her soul, Gabriel couldn't place it.

It was a sunny Saturday and the zoo was crowded but this woman in her steel-toed boots and working gloves who seemed to be invisible to the other visitors, just a part of the scenery, was the only person around who sparked Gabriel's interest. Not many people could say that about themselves. And even fewer survived that kind of interest.

Gabriel finished his cone and sat back with his eyes on the woman until she disappeared with the wheelbarrow behind the elephants' house.

For a while after he'd first seen her Gabriel could convince himself that he came to the zoo for the ice cream. Grab some pistachio ice cream from Luigi, whose name wasn't Luigi and who'd never been to _Bella Italia_ in his life but people didn't trust someone named Dmitri to make decent ice cream, and sat on his bench near the elephants' compound. And sometimes he saw her.

If he got there early enough he could watch her letting the elephants out into the compound or in the evening herding them back inside. Over the day she brought in branches or baskets with bread and fruits. And she got rid of the dung. For long hours Gabriel just sat there on his bench and waited for her next appearance. One time he even forgot to buy his alibi ice cream cone.

He still hadn't figured out what had caught his interest. People usually interested him only in one of two ways: Just deserts or sex. He knew nothing about her that would justify the first and she wasn't his type for the latter.

He could have stalked her. Follow her home, sniff through her life, entering her mind. He could do all that and she wouldn't even notice but he didn't. The only thing he actually did besides watching her from his place on the bench was to get close enough for him to read her name on her overall – Bessie – and to have a real look at her face.

She was in her early thirties and the weather and the hard work had cut the first lines into her face. It was a cloudy day with the smell of rain hanging in the air and her eyes had the same stormy color as the sky.

Satisfied for the moment Gabriel backed off and went for another ice cream. He needed to think.

"You sure like my ice cream." Luigi said with forced cheer to his first and probably only customer of the day, it was too chilly and the few visitors in the zoo went more for the hotdogs and coffee than ice cream.

"Sure I do, pal." Gabriel slid over the money and on a second thought added some more. "You know what, make that two."

Luigi raised an eyebrow but got another cone while Gabriel started on the first one.

With both hands full he made his way pass the "Employees Only" sign and followed the path to the backside of the elephants' house. In the far corner, out of sight from the visitors, Bessie was unloading the wheelbarrow. She hadn't noticed him yet.

"Hi there." Gabriel greeted her so he wouldn't scare her. She looked like the kind of woman who would swing the shovel she'd in her hand at somebody who would sneak up on her.

She turned at his voice and looked him up and down for a long second.

"Sorry, sir." She said and her gaze shifted from the two ice creams to his face. Her voice was warm and deep but she sounded like she was reciting something she'd said too many times before. "This area is not open for visitors. Please return the public area."

Gabriel licked the melting ice cream from his cone and stretched out his hand with the second one.

"Thought with all the hard work you're doing you could use something to brighten the day." When she didn't take it, Gabriel continued: "Pistachio, best in the world. Trust me, I know."

She looked at the melting ice cream as if she couldn't quite believe that this was actually happening. Then she looked at the cloud-heavy sky and down at her stained working gloves. When she finally looked Gabriel in the eye she did a poor job at hiding the what-the-fuck?-expression.

"Sorry, sir." She turned back to her work but kept an eye on him. "We are not allowed to accept anything from visitors. Please return to the public area."

"Silly me." He shook his head and then licked around the second cone to catch the melting ice cream. "More for me. This is way too good to be wasted. I could go for another one later. What do you say? Nothing better than some pistachio goodness after a hard days work. I'm buying."

He had to alter between the two cones to catch everything before it dropped to the ground but he managed, he was good with his tongue. Bessie just stared at him for a second before she shook her head with a smile.

"Please, you have to return to the public area." She said with a look around but they were alone.

"Is that a yes?" He asked and stuffed half a cone into his mouth. She actually laughed at that.

"That's a yes." Gabriel answered his own question as soon as he'd swallowed and the second half followed immediately. He didn't want to get her in trouble so he turned and walked back to the front of the elephants' house. Before he turned around the corner he looked back to find her eyes still on him. With the last bit of the second cone he pointed at her, then threw it in the air and caught it with his mouth. Behind him he heard her laughing.

Gabriel made sure to be there when she left the zoo hours later through the employees entrance at the side. Okay, he cheated to keep the ice cream from melting but he wanted to do this right.

When Bessie left the zoo she'd changed into jeans and a well-worn jacket and she popped the collar against the chilly wind and the drizzling rain which had started a while ago. Keeping her head down against the weather she nearly ran into Gabriel.

"I can't believe it." She stopped dead in front of him obviously unsure how to react. He stretched out his hand with the cone and this time she took it. More out of reflex than a conscious decision but she took it.

She had to wait half an hour for the bus, after closing time the bus didn't come that often, more than enough time to eat some ice cream.

"This is good." She admitted after the first hesitant lick.

"I wouldn't lie about something like ice cream." Gabriel said in all earnesty. They ate in silence. After she'd finished hers Bessie rubbed her hands to get them warm again.

"You are a weird man." She blew into her cupped hands and eyed him from the side.

"I take that as a compliment." He grinned at her and started to rub his hands as well as if he was cold too. "Next time we should try something indoors like coffee or something. At least as long as the weather doesn't like us."

"Next time?" She asked and for the first time she seemed shy and she looked away with a blush. Gabriel pretended to not notice.

"If you like." He shrugged. "I'd like."

"I'm not very good with people." She said it in a way like she expected him to bolt at that confession. Instead he shrugged again.

"You could pretend that I only look human but underneath I'm something different."

That made her chuckle, a deep and rich sound. He liked that, he'd like to hear that more often.

tbc


	2. Chapter 2

Two days later they had coffee in a nice place Bessie had suggested. Gabriel hadn't bothered to look around outside the zoo before so he was glad she took the lead.

The waitress brought coffee and warm cherry pie right from the oven. The smell alone was delicious and Gabriel closed his eyes when he tasted the first bite. This was good. Who knew a forgotten little town like this could hold so many culinary wonders?

Opposite from him Bessie chuckled and Gabriel cracked one eye open.

"What?"

"You want some time alone with the pie?" She asked and her face lit up with her smile. It smoothed the lines around her mouth and deepened the ones around her eyes emphasizing the mischief twinkle.

"I'm on a date with a guy who's seconds from humping the food." She shook her head in disbelieve. Realizing what she'd just said she mumbled a "crap" and hid behind her cup while Gabriel nearly choked on his pie.

"Sorry, I'm not good at this." She made a vague gesture with her free hand. Gabriel caught her hand and placed it on the table with his on top.

"You are great." He reassured her and released her hand. "Thinking about it, I should order a pie to go so when I come home all alone I have some company." He wiggled his eyebrows and she burst out laughing.

"And I don't even know your name. I'm Bessie Nolan." She introduced herself properly and looked expectantly at Gabriel who had just taken another bit from the delicious pie.

"Gabriel." He answered around sweet cherry filling. He hadn't used his real name in like forever and he totally blamed it on the pie or maybe on Bessie's blunt attitude that the name was out of his mouth without his permission. It took him a few second to notice that Bessie was still looking at him with that expectant expression. Right, he needed a surname.

Gaining time by chewing a cherry he tried to come up with a name.

"Gabriel Cherry." He finally answered and shrugged inwardly. It was a name, wasn't it?

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Cherry." She raised her cup in a mock salute and Gabriel wasn't sure if she was calling him on his fake name. Glancing at his hand she added: "No Mrs. Cherry?"

"No, no Mrs. Cherry." Gabriel finished his pie with a satisfied moan and really considered a second slice. The apple pie looked good, too.

In the end the staff threw them out at closing time. By then Gabriel had eaten his way through all flavors of pie the place offered and one more cherry pie just because it was there. Bessie had given up the pie marathon after the second slice but she didn't seem to mind that he was stuffing himself.

"Where do you put that all?" She asked and fell in step beside him. At this time of the evening the streets were empty and street lamps cast warm puddles of light into the night.

"Good metabolism." Gabriel answered which wasn't exactly a lie.

She lived not far away and they walked the short distance. They chatted about everything and nothing at all, apparently Bessie could talk about elephants for hours, and Gabriel couldn't remember the last time he had enjoyed a humans company that much.

"We're here." Bessie stopped in front of a neat little house. It could use some fresh paint and the garden hadn't seen a lawn-mower in quite a while but it looked nice. Like a home.

Bessie shifted from one foot to the other and wasn't looking at him.

_Like a teenager on her first date,_ Gabriel mused. She was clearly unsure on how to proceed, should she ask him to come in or not, and after a second Gabriel took pity on her.

"Thanks for the evening." He brushed a peck on her cheek and stepped back. "I'd like to repeat this some time soon."

She bit her bottom lip and then with a shy smile she said: "I make a decent steak with baked potatoes. We could ..." She trailed off with a shake of her head. "I'm really not good at this, sorry."

"Saturday. Eight o'clock" Gabriel said and pointed with his finger at her. "You make the steaks, I'll bring beer. You like beer, right? And we watch the game, you're in for a game, aren't you?"

She breathed in relief and somehow Gabriel was relieved too that he hadn't pushed on coming in for a coffee or something.

"As long as we're talking football and not synchronized swimming we have a date." She said with her old bluntness but Gabriel could see the second she realized she was inviting him on a date. A second one.

"Good night, Bessie." Gabriel retreated before this could become too awkward. "See you on Saturday."

Feeling her eyes on him he made his way down the street until he was sure to be out of her sight. Then he vanished. Part of him wanted to go back just to find out what she'd do now. He could watch her, observe her without her ever knowing but he didn't do it. Instead he returned to the small apartment on the other side of the country he'd used as a base for his latest Trickster justice act.

Despite the Winnie the Pooh sighting and one rather impressive explosion there were no hunters in sight and Gabriel had seen no reason to give up his hideout just yet.

With a sigh Gabriel plopped into the comfortable armchair in front of the TV.

So far Bessie hadn't asked him where he lived or what he did for a living but maybe he should think of an answer to those questions beforehand. He could pretend to be everything he wanted, could become a doctor or a lawyer or the garbage man. He could pretend to live in a big house with a money-doesn't-matter-attitude or in a small apartment struggling to pay the rent. But for the first time he wasn't thinking of what would fit his cover to get his victim or what he'd enjoy, no the question in his mind was: What did Bessie expect him to be? What would make him interesting to her? Who was that Mr. Cherry she'd invited over for steak and beer?

"Mr. Cherry." Gabriel chuckled. He'd used many names over the years but that was a new one. Why he actually bothered with questions like that he had no idea. He only knew that he looked forward to Saturday. When had been the last time he'd spent time with a woman without wanting to have sex with her, he wondered. Had that ever happened?

He glanced over to his bed, big and comfortable with red silk sheets and a solid frame for the experimental mind. Normally he'd finish the day with summoning a hot woman or two and some rolling in the sheets but he wasn't in the mood.

Strange, he thought. His mind stayed with Bessie but not in a sexual way. He recalled her smile and the passion she'd talked with about the elephants she worked with. Somehow this woman had caught his interest, was more than a face in the crowd, more than something to kill time with and entertain him for a short while.

Astonished at that realization Gabriel sat in his chair for long hours and tried to figure out what this was all about. Normally things were pretty clear, humans were pretty clear, but this was different and he'd no idea why.

But he really looked forward to his date with Bessie.

"A date." He shook his head in disbelieve.


	3. Chapter 3

On Saturday, exactly at eight o'clock, Gabriel approached Bessie's house with a six-pack under his arm. He'd appeared a bit down the street, not in direct view from the house, just to make sure, and he wasn't surprised when he noticed the movement behind one of the curtains. He would have smiled upon Bessie's teenager like behavior if he hadn't a small butterfly feeling in his stomach himself.

_I'm not nervous,_ he reassured himself and rang the door bell. He took a deep breath before Bessie opened the door, though.

"Gabriel." She smiled at him and fingered her hair with one hand. "Please come in."

She led him to the kitchen. "You're right on time, the steaks will be ready in a minute. You like yours rare?"

"Rare sounds good." Gabriel put the beer on the counter and pried two bottles loose. "Here, take a beer, relax, everything is fine."

She took the bottle with a shy smile. "It's just … I'm a little rusty with the dating stuff." She admitted.

"That makes two of us." Gabriel raised his bottle and they clunked them together. "We'll have dinner, which smells delicious by the way, and we'll watch the game. Just the two of us hanging out."

While he helped her setting the table Gabriel thought about what he'd just said. It was true, he was fairly new in the dating department. He had sex whenever he wanted but he never really went through the trouble of dating.

He turned the TV on and settled down while Bessie fixed the plates. Steak, baked potato and a small salad, it tasted as good as he'd expected.

"You're a man who likes his food." Bessie said while he wolfed down half of his steak. The pride was clearly in her voice.

"Good food." Gabriel clarified. "I like good food and this is really good."

By the time they had finished their dinner they both had relaxed a bit and with a second beer they made themselves comfortable on the couch. The game was on but Gabriel had no idea who was winning not to mention which teams were on the field. He was pretty sure they played football but his attention was on Bessie and she didn't really look at the TV either.

"The zoo hasn't made it official but Nona is pregnant." Bessie said as if she herself was responsible for that. "We weren't sure if she could keep it but now it looks good. A baby will bring more customers in, god knows we need the money."

Gabriel was pretty sure she was talking about one of the elephants being pregnant and not about a co-worker or something.

"You know, it's not easy to breed elephants in zoos and for a small one like ours it's a pretty big deal." She beamed and warmed up to that topic. "Two times it didn't work out but the third one is the charm, right? We got the sperm from a zoo in Canada ..." She wanted to continue but was interrupted by Gabriel nearly choking on his beer.

"Sorry." Gaping for air he placed the bottle on the table so he won't spill it. "Did you just say …?" He made vague gesture with his now free hand.

"Don't be such a prude." She rolled her eyes. "Zoos exchange sperm of a lot of species all the time."

"If you say so." Gabriel chuckled and then leaned in and kissed her on the mouth. It seemed like the right thing to do. If he was reading the signals she sent right, and he was pretty sure he did, it was what she expected him to do, what she wanted him to do.

He didn't expect her to freeze with panic in her suddenly wide eyes.

"I'm sorry." Gabriel retreated to the other end of the couch. "I didn't mean to … I didn't want …"

Did he get it all wrong? Did he screw up? And why did it bother him that much if he did?

"No, it's okay." She hurried to say but looked away. "It's just … you surprised me."

If he didn't know better Gabriel would have pegged her as a virgin. But he knew better. He couldn't tell the circumstances but he could tell that she wasn't a virgin.

"You have been kissed before, haven't you?" Gabriel tried to keep the mood light-hearted but silently he begged her to confirm that she had at least one boyfriend before. He had no idea what he'd do if her answer was "no, never been kissed". What that would imply. He could have found the answer in her mind, easily, but that was the last thing he wanted to do. No way he'd violate her that way. Just no.

To his relief she smiled that warm smile of hers. "Don't worry, I have been kissed before." The _and more_ unspoken but clearly there. "It's just been a while since Jimmy."

She took a long swing from her beer bottle, her glossed over eyes far away.

"We were both not among the top ten of the most popular kids in High School." She sighed. "Being with Jimmy was more about not being alone than about love. For both of us. Then college came along and suddenly half the country was between us. We stayed in contact for a while but there wasn't really a point in that." She shrugged and then laughed to cover her embarrassment. "Look at me. I'm sitting here with you and all I'm doing is talking about elephant sperm and old boyfriends. You should be running for the hills by now."

She bit her bottom lip as if she expected him to do exactly that. Instead he took her hand, gently uncramped her fingers and laced them together with his.

"I'm not running." He reassured her and he felt her tension melting away. "Nobody after Jimmy? I don't want trouble with your special forces boyfriend you forgot to mention." He tried to lighten the mood and it worked. At least a little bit.

"Men tend to avoid women who smell like elephant all day and can lift hay bales half their weight with ease." She tried to say it in a casual way but he could sense the hurt behind her words.

Gabriel scooted closer till their knees were touching.

"Hey, I first noticed you when your were shoveling elephant dung into a wheelbarrow." He reminded her. "I'm the one how brought you a pistachio ice cream while you were covered with that shit. Literally."

"You are a strange man, Mr. Cherry."

"Yes, I am." He cocked his head considering if he was rushing things too fast or not. "I'd like to kiss you again."

For a long second he thought she'd say no. But then she nodded. "I'd like that."

The kiss was more chaste than anything else but Gabriel didn't want it any other way.

The rest of the evening went by with easy chatter. They didn't kiss again but they stayed in constant contact, hand in hand or one hand landed on the other one's knee and at some point Gabriel had his arm around her shoulder and she seemed to like it.

It was way past midnight and the six-pack was long gone along with some hard liquor she'd in stock when Bessie asked him to stay over night. Normally he wouldn't think twice about it and just do the horizontal tango but the way the words rushed out of her mouth and the fact that she didn't look him in the eye told him she wasn't ready for this. He had spent an eternity studying human behavior and he could clearly tell that she'd asked because that's what she thought had to happen next.

He didn't call her on that, though. Instead he said: "I think I'm too drunk and too tired for more than sleeping." He stood and made a point of swaying a little. "I should go home now but we should repeat this. Seriously."

The good night kiss at the door wasn't that chaste anymore. Bessie was a quick learner.

And then Gabriel stood there on the street, alone in the dark night, and wondered what the fuck he was doing.


	4. Chapter 4

They dated. They actually dated. Gabriel had a hard time wrapping his mind around that fact. Maybe he should check on Hell, they must have serious problems with their heating.

They went to the movies and had dinner in a restaurant and every time they ended on Bessie's couch and talked. And Gabriel enjoyed it.

Gabriel enjoyed listening to her talking about her work, about the elephants and he did a pretty good job at avoiding anything personal about himself. First he had intended to make things up, he could backup every lie he'd come up with, but now it just felt wrong. So he told her that he lived in a motel for now, what he did, at least he'd rented the room, and that he was between jobs which wasn't exactly a lie either. And then he prompted her to tell him more about Nona the pregnant elephant which kept her busy for the next two hours.

"You love those elephants, don't you?" Gabriel asked after the conversation had died down for a moment.

"They're my life." Bessie said with that sincere tone in her voice that meant she was serious about something.

Gabriel shifted so he faced her and took her hand. "You know, the way you talk about them." He shook his head and smiled, this was so cheesy. "I'd like to get to know them. How about a private tour? You could show me."

She chuckled softly and her cheeks turned just a little bit pink. "I'd like to but I can't. I can't just let somebody in, I'd lose my job. The zoo has a very strict policy about that." She sounded sorry but Gabriel got it. No way he wanted for her to get in trouble.

"Don't bother." He reassured her. "Just one of those crazy ideas I have sometimes. I can always come in with the other visitors during business hours." It wouldn't be the same, though.

However, the idea was there and Gabriel wasn't somebody who could just let it be. He wanted something, he got it. Period.

So a few days later Mr. Cherry had an appointment with Mr. Denton the owner of the zoo. Gabriel treated this like every other act he'd ever played. Find their weakness and use it against them. Not that Mr. Denton was a bad person or something but he had a business to run and money was always tight. Gabriel could use that.

So when a Mr. Cherry asked to see him to talk about a generous donation he intended to make, Mr. Denton couldn't say no.

"Mr. Cherry, it's a pleasure to meet you." They shook hands, Mr. Denton had a firm grip which Gabriel liked, and then they sat down. Gabriel opened the button of his suit jacket, three-thousand dollar suit, custom-made, and crossed his legs so that Mr. Denton had a good view at his four-hundred dollar Italian leather shoes.

"The pleasure is on my side." Gabriel replied with an easy smile. "I've been enjoying your zoo for quite a while now and it's an honor to meet the man who's responsible for all this."

"Then you should have a look at our employees. It's them and their hard work that keeps this zoo alive." It sounded like a phrase Mr. Denton had used way too often but one look in the other man's eyes told Gabriel that he really meant it.

"I'll come back to that in a second." Gabriel said because that was the whole point of this charade. He reached into the pocket of his jacket and got his checkbook out. "Little zoos like yours always have a hard time, I know that. I know it's not much but I'd like to help."

With wide movements he signed the check and handed it over.

"Thank you." Mr. Denton glanced discreetly at the check when he took it and stopped mid-movement. Then he looked again.

"Mr. Cherry, this has to be a mistake." He managed to say in a nearly steady voice.

"It isn't." Gabriel reassured him. The check was good. The suit and the shoes and everything else was fake. But this check would hold. Would ruin an upcoming group of white supremacists and bring one specific douchebag in a really bad situation where he had to explain what had happened to all the money and he would have no fucking clue, however, Gabriel could live with that.

"You are serious." Mr. Denton finally realized.

"Absolutely." Gabriel put the checkbook away. "There is one small favor you could do me, though."

Instantly Mr. Denton became wary but Gabriel couldn't blame him. A donation like this rarely came without strings attached.

"I happen to be friends with one of your employees, Bessie Nolan, she works with the elephants." Gabriel waited a second to see if Mr. Denton knew who he was talking about.

"Bessie, of course." Mr. Denton nodded and that gave him another point in Gabriel's book. This man actually knew who was working for him.

"What is with her?" He asked in that neutral tone people used when they didn't know if this would turn out to be bad or good.

"I've asked her for a private tour in the elephant's house but sadly that doesn't seem possible." He spread his hands in a _What can I do?_ manner.

Relief washed over Mr. Denton's face and he shook his head with a small laugh.

"That can be arranged." He reached for the phone but Gabriel hold him back.

"I'd appreciate it if you don't mention the money." No way he wanted for Bessie to feel like she had to repay him in any way.

"Of course." Mr. Denton sounded a bit offended.

"And please don't order her to take me around." Gabriel continued. "Ask her if she wants to give me the tour, it's absolutely fine if she says no." _Either way, you can keep the money_, was the unspoken message and Mr. Denton nodded in understanding.

He made the call, it took a while until he had Bessie on the other end, but she agreed instantly. After she'd recovered from the shock of being called by the big boss himself.

"We're closing in about half an hour." Mr. Denton said after he'd finished the call. "Until then there should be everything arranged for your visit. My assistant will bring you coffee in a minute, if you need anything else don't be shy. She'll show you the way to the elephants later."

"Thank you but that won't be necessary." They shook hands again and Gabriel turned to leave. "I'd rather like to wait near the elephant's compound. You have this wonderful ice cream booth there. I'm telling you, best pistachio ice cream in the world." He pointed with his finger at the man and couldn't hide his childlike joy. Okay, he didn't actually try.

"If you say so, Mr. Cherry."

"Absolutely."

Gabriel left the office with a still quite stunned Mr. Denton behind. Hands in his pockets and a whistle on his lips he made his way through the nearly abandoned zoo. The few remaining visitors were heading for the other direction, towards the entrance, and when Gabriel reached the ice cream booth Luigi was already busy cleaning up.

"You have one pistachio cone left for me?" Gabriel asked with audible hope in his voice.

"For you? Always." Taking in Gabriel's outfit Luigi handed him the cone. "Dressed up for the signorinas, Mister?" Luigi wiggled his eyebrows.

"Business." He replied and took a bite. This never became old. "I doubt my signorina will appreciate the monkey-suit." Bessie would probably laugh at him and call him crazy to come in this outfit for a tour trough the elephant's house.

Luigi leaned over the counter and looked around to make sure they were alone before he spoke. "Signorinas always like a man in a suit, trust me, she'll love it."

Out of the corner of his eye Gabriel noticed movement over at the elephant's house.

"Let's find out." He took the last bite of his cone, waved Luigi goodby and made his way over to Bessie.


	5. Chapter 5

Bessie didn't dig the suit. She stood in the door of the elephant's house eyes roaming the area in search for Gabriel but her gaze swept over him without recognition.

When she finally realized it was him walking up to her, her eyes went huge and she sized him up from head to toe and couldn't hide her amused smile.

"Well, somebody's overdressed." She finally said but Gabriel shrugged it off.

"Thought this was the best way to impress your boss." He closed the distance and brushed a kiss on her cheek.

"You really want this tour, don't you?" She asked and tried to hide how uncomfortable she was with kissing in public. Not just in public, at work. Gabriel got it and stepped back giving them some decent space.

"I totally do."

Bessie hold him at arm's length and studied him properly. "Are you a millionaire in hiding or something like that?"

"It's only lent. James Bond wants it back tomorrow." He loosened the tie and opened the top button of his shirt. "If it doesn't kill me by then, that is."

"If you don't want to ruin Mr. Bond's shoes you should probably change into some rubber boots." She led the way to a small changing room and a few minutes later Gabriel stood there in his three-thousand dollar suit and yellow rubber boots. For good measure she forced a rubber apron on him as well.

Then the tour started. Bessie's co-workers had cleared the area and it was just the two of them and the elephants.

They took their time. Bessie showed him where they stored the food for the animals and explained in detail what they ate and what better not. There was an area where they could give an elephant a proper wash and where the vet could examine one of the animals. And then there was the area where the elephants spent their time when they weren't outside.

"This is Nona. Our pride and joy." Bessie introduced and the pride was written all over her face.

"Nice to meet you, Nona." Gabriel said in all earnest and stretched out his hand to meet the tip of her trunk. Most animals had a sense for the supernatural and Nona sniffed at his hand as if she was trying to figure out what this strange being in front of her was. At least she seemed to sense that he meant no danger and didn't freak out.

"She likes you."

"Looks like."

Feeding time was already over but Bessie encouraged Gabriel to give Nona half a loaf of bread which she took with the nimble tip of her trunk.

"She doesn't look pregnant." Gabriel observed and stroke the trunk though the bars. Dry and a bit rough but not unpleasant. Nona made a pleased noise.

"She'll be pregnant for twenty-two months, there isn't anything to see yet." Bessie gave him another piece of bread which he fed to Nona.

In the meantime the other elephants had come closer, wary of the intruder but not alert. Bessie introduced them all to Gabriel and he patted every single one of them. They hummed their pleasure in that deep voice they owned which Gabriel could hear but he was pretty sure was lost on Bessie. Humans missed so much of what was going on around them. But one look at Bessie's face told him that she didn't need to hear her elephants to know they felt comfortable around him and how much that meant to her.

When they finally left the zoo it was dark outside and Bessie had missed the last bus.

"No problem, my car is just around the corner. I drive you home." Gabriel offered and led the way to the old Ford he suddenly owned. He even managed to handle the car as if it was daily business to him, usually he didn't bother with the real deal.

"I really enjoyed the tour. Thank you." Gabriel parked the car in front of her house but Bessie didn't get out just yet. There was a sudden tension in the air and Gabriel waited patiently for her to speak. This was her move to make also he was pretty sure he knew what she was thinking about.

"Would you like to come in for a coffee?" She finally asked and it was clear that she wasn't just talking about chatter on the couch and a beer like the other evenings they'd spent together.

Instead of an answer Gabriel leaned over and kissed her. She smiled into the kiss and for a long minute they were just exploring each other's mouths. Knowing they'd have to break apart to get at least out of the car Gabriel was tempted to shorten the way to the bed. Instead he broke the kiss and leaned his forehead against hers.

"I don't mind continuing this in the car." He said with a smug grin. "But trust me, a bed is way more comfortable."

The grin flashing over her face was anything but innocent. "Believe me, I know."

Giggling like teenagers they dashed to the door and as soon as they reached the privacy of the house Gabriel put his skilled hands to work. Had her pretty much riled up before they even reached the stairs to the upper floor and for a second Gabriel considered to make a left turn which would end with them on the couch but Bessie dragged him in the other direction.

They made their way to the bedroom with roaming hands and exploring tongues. Gabriel lost his jacket and the tie on the way and by the time they reached the bed Bessie was muttering something about too many buttons into his mouth while her hands tried to free him from his shirt.

Keeping in mind that her only experience in this field was with her high school boyfriend a long time ago, Gabriel didn't rush things. Okay, compared to him everybody looked like a virgin but that also meant that he knew exactly what he was doing.

Sex with Bessie was different. It wasn't that she was taller than him, it happened, or that she had broad shoulders or could manhandled him every way she pleased. Gabriel couldn't put his finger on it, however, this was different.

"Condom in the dresser." She mumbled between kisses and Gabriel fumbled blindly for it. Like with the kissing Bessie was a quick learner with other things too and she absolutely wasn't as inexperienced and shy in bed as Gabriel had feared. What she lacked of experience she compensated with enthusiasm.

Later she had her head on his shoulder and her fingers were tracing the muscles on his chest.

"You okay?" He asked and placed another kiss on top of her head. She made a sleepy sound and nodded.

"Was it … you know … good for you?" She didn't look up but he could guess that she was blushing.

"It was great." He reassured her and it really was. He couldn't even remember the last time it had been this good. It hadn't been what it usually was for him, fast and dirty and just about getting off, this had been sweeter, more sensual.

"It was perfect." _Like making love,_ he thought and nearly burst out laughing.

"Hmm?" Bessie made a questioning noise but she was already half asleep. She snuggled closer and let out a content sigh.

"Nothing, it's okay, you can sleep." He stroke her hair and made himself more comfortable. Her warm body pressed against his, the weight of her head on his shoulder and the soft puffs of her breathing on his skin, he could lie like this the whole night. Just lay there and hold her in his arms. He did.


	6. Chapter 6

Hunger drew Gabriel out of bed in the morning. They had skipped dinner the night before and the last thing he'd eaten had been the ice cream right before the tour.

Gabriel was starving, a side effect of his little Trickster act but one he could easily live with. Seriously, the other angels had no idea what they missed.

Without waking Bessie he got out of bed and out of the room. His only clothes were the James Bond suit but he solved the problem with one snap of his fingers. He could have had some spare clothes in his car, right?

Dressed but still hungry Gabriel went downstairs and headed for the kitchen. It took him less than a minute to call it a lost cause. How could Bessie survive with only coffee and buttered toast in the morning? He had tasted her coffee and it was good but not that good.

Gabriel stood in the middle of the kitchen, shook his head and snapped his fingers.

"Ahh." He made and popped a strawberry in his mouth. "That's better."

It didn't take long for the rich aroma of coffee in the air to get Bessie's attention.

"Did you make breakfast?" She asked before she even reached the kitchen.

"How do you like your coffee?" Gabriel asked around the better half of a blueberry pancake. Maple syrup was dripping down his chin and he cleared most of it with the back of his hand.

"Sugar no milk." Bessie stepped through the door and stopped short. She wore a wide t-shirt, baggy sweatpants and had tried to wrestle a serious case of bed hair into submission with questionable success. Gabriel stared at her for a second and then forced the pancake down his throat.

Bessie blinked and then blinked again and then she rubbed her eyes like a five-year-old on Christmas morning.

_Adorable_, Gabriel thought and swallowed again. _What is this woman doing to me?_

"What is all this?" She finally asked.

"Breakfast." Gabriel answered in the most casual voice he could master and finished the other half of his pancake.

Slowly as if she feared one sudden movement could let it all disappear Bessie sat down and Gabriel poured her some coffee.

"Where did you get all this? And when?" Still a bit stunned she stirred her coffee and took in the overburden table in front of her.

"I can't tell you all my secrets, can't I?" He said with a smug grin and filled her plate with pancakes for a start.

By the time they'd finished their meal the table didn't look touched at all, and no Gabriel didn't cheat right in front of her. They stored the leftovers in the fridge which was a tight fit and Gabriel had to lean against the door to close it.

"What do you want to do today?" Gabriel asked. It was Bessie's day off so they had plenty of time.

They made it a lazy day with some movies, light chatter and living from the breakfast leftovers. Gabriel stayed the night.

And he stayed most of the nights of the following two weeks.

"Do you still have that motel room?" Bessie asked on a random morning after they had finished breakfast and she was about to go to work.

"Yeah?"

"Get your stuff over here." She said and grabbed her coat. "No point in wasting money."

It took Gabriel another two months to realize that he was living with a woman.

They had settled into some kind of routine. Bessie had her work so Gabriel insisted on doing the groceries and all the cooking. It never failed to surprise her how he managed to have everything hot and ready the second she came home. Even surprise overtime hours or a late bus couldn't throw him off.

While she was off to work Gabriel used the time for some maintenance in and around the house. The house got fresh paint and the garden actually looked like somebody cared. The biggest difficulty for Gabriel was to break his _work_ down to believable chunks. It would be hard to explain how he'd managed to squeeze what would have taken three men and a week into the few hours Bessie was gone for the day.

He swung by at the zoo for a pistachio ice cream during Bessie's lunch break often enough for her co-workers to call him her boyfriend and he really could get used to that. He'd even started to look for a job and not just for cover to get close to his victims. If he wanted to stay for a while he'd have to lay low anyway. The attention of a hunter or worse could burst his little domestic bubble any time, he knew that, but for the moment he didn't really care.

One evening Bessie was running later than usual. Late enough for Gabriel to consider to go looking for her but then the front door opened and Bessie stormed in.

"You won't believe this." She squealed and before Gabriel knew what was happening she tried to crush him in a bear-hug. For a second Gabriel was really glad he couldn't die from suffocation.

It took a few minutes for her to calm down enough to sit down.

"After work Mr. Denton wanted to see me." She finally started. "Thought he'd fire me or something."

"But he didn't, did he?" Gabriel wondered if they'd need champagne to celebrate a promotion or better a bottle of Jack to drown her sorrows.

Shaking her head in disbelieve she answered: "Looks like the zoo has gotten a big donation and I mean like really big and Mr. Denton wants to use the money for the elephant's compound. To promote Nona's baby."

"Wow. That's great." Gabriel smiled, at least his money came to good use. To see the overwhelming joy in Bessie's eyes, it was totally worth it. She was beautiful.

"You haven't heard the best part yet." She fought to keep her breathing under control. "Mr. Denton wants me to become the new head of the elephant's house. Me!"

"That's, that's ..." Lost for words Gabriel kissed her.

"I know." She smiled into the kiss.

They celebrated with the champagne Gabriel happened to have in the fridge and then he took her out for dinner. After that they went to a bar near by because Bessie needed a beer and a few shots to believe this shit, her words not his.

When they finally stumbled home, far from sober but neither of them cared, Bessie tried her best at eating him alive.

"Come on." She urged and her hand found its way into his pants. Giggling and horny like teenagers they didn't even made it upstairs but the kitchen table would do. It was closer than the couch. They didn't bother with taking of too many clothes either.

Only illuminated by the moonlight Bessie's face was a thing of beauty, light and shadow playing over smooth skin. Gabriel leaned in and kissed her, trailed down her neck, taking in her taste. She came with her back bowed and her eyes closed and his name on her lips. With two quick thrusts Gabriel followed her.

Gabriel rested his head on her chest, her heartbeat quick and alive in his ear.

Half asleep, comfortable in the afterglow and a little bit drunk, Bessie's voice was hushed and drowsy.

"I love you." She mumbled and stroked his head.

Gabriel froze. This three little words cut deep into him, sobering him instantly. Nobody had ever said those words to him. Ever. He knew his family loved him, they'd tear him a new one for leaving if they'd find him but they loved him. His father loved him. But nobody had ever said those words. Not like this, not like they meant it. And here was this wonderful woman who loved him.

Gabriel swallowed against he lump in his throat. Slowly he rested his elbows next to her shoulders and propped himself up to look her in the eye. She was barley awake, her eyes on half-mast at best but she smiled at him.

"I love you, too." He whispered and kissed her. "I love you."


	7. Chapter 7

A few days later they were lying in bed, it was deep in the night and Bessie was fast asleep. Gabriel didn't need to sleep, however, he enjoyed lying next to her and to listen to her breathing. He still couldn't quite believe that he'd found this woman. His Bessie.

A smile ghosted over his face and he reached out to brush the hair out of her forehead. She sighed in her sleep and turned into his touch.

Something was different tonight. Gabriel couldn't place it but something was off.

Bessie lay on her back with the blanket pooled around her waist so it was easy for Gabriel to sneak his hand under the hem of the t-shirt she wore for the night. His pinky just dipped below the waistband of her slip when he spread his fingers and let his hand rest there for a moment. Using all his senses Gabriel searched for the origin of his feeling of difference. Was she sick? Hurt? He could fix almost everything but he needed to find it first.

It was so plain obvious that he missed it at first. When he realized what the difference was, Gabriel yanked his hand back is if he'd burned himself.

It couldn't be. He had to be wrong.

Slowly to not wake her and maybe a little bit afraid of what he'd find Gabriel put his hand back on her lower belly. With closed eyes he focused on his other senses.

What had been a diffuse feeling at first became stronger and clearer by the minute.

Life. A new life was growing right under his hand. Just a few cells, a few hours old at the most, but it was there. The spark of life was growing inside of Bessie.

"No." Gabriel whispered into the silence of the night. "Please no."

This wasn't just a new life, not just a baby. This was a Nephilim. An offspring of a _son of God_ and a _daughter of men_.

Back in the day they hadn't been that uncommon. But the Nephilims went out of control and God had banished them from the face of the earth. Since then they were forbidden, considered to be abominations by Heaven and men. As far as Gabriel knew the last Nephilim had been killed millennia ago and the angel responsible for its creation had been punished. Grace ripped out of him, fallen to live as a human. Went insane and killed himself not long after.

However, Gabriel's last concern was his own well-being at the moment.

With closed eyes he rested his head on Bessie's shoulder but left his hand where it was.

Bessie didn't know, couldn't know at this point of time, and it would be weeks before she would know for sure. Gabriel could fix this without her ever knowing. As if it had never been there. One thought and he could pretend it had never been there. One thought and it would be gone.

In a minute. He'd do it in a minute.

A Nephilim. She, he could clearly tell it was a she, was neither human nor angel, caught between Heaven and Earth, belonging nowhere.

A Nephilim was different, an abomination. She'd be alone, the only one of her kind. Fitting in nowhere, hated and hunted by everyone.

Gabriel blinked away the tears and pressed a gentle kiss on Bessie's lips. She mumbled something but didn't wake up.

"I'm sorry." He propped himself up on his elbow, eyes fixed on his other hand still low on Bessie's belly.

"It's better this way." He took a deep breath. It would be over in a second.

Gabriel stayed that way for long minutes, didn't move a muscle, didn't even blink, trying to force himself to do it. To erase this abomination that never should have come to existence in the first place.

With a wounded sound he collapsed next to Bessie. He couldn't do it. He couldn't.

"Gabe?" Bessie mumbled in her sleep and reached for him. "You alright?"

He wanted to shake his head and tell her no, nothing was alright but he fell into her embrace instead and hold on to her.

"Shh." She stroke his head. "It's okay." She wasn't even awake and had probably no idea what she was doing but Gabriel just tightened his hold on her.

It wasn't just a Nephilim, it wasn't just an abomination that was growing in Bessie. This was his daughter. She was part him and part Bessie. She had been created by an act of love.

And this was not his decision to make. At least not alone. This had to be Bessie's decision as well. Gabriel couldn't decide for her. He had no idea what he'd do if she didn't want to keep the baby. It was not human. She had every right to decide against it. What he'd do if she wanted the baby Gabriel had no idea either.

Either way, to make a decision Bessie would have to know the details. Gabriel would have to come clean.

Seeking the warmth of her body Gabriel snuggled closer. He would have to tell her the truth and it was quite possible that she'd throw him out of her house, out of her life.

He had dared to picture a life with her, growing old with her. The latter would have required a bit of cheating on his part or maybe he would have told her the truth at some point. But dropping the bomb now? Not only about his true nature but about the growing life in her belly as well? Gabriel wasn't that confident that this would end well.

In the morning he somehow managed to go on like everything was fine. They had breakfast and then Bessie left the house. Gabriel left as soon as he was sure she wouldn't come back because she'd forgotten something. He needed time to think. Space to clear his head.

For a while he lay in the Sahara. Nothing close to civilization in any direction for days, nothing to interrupt his thoughts. He lay there in the hot sand, blue sky and blinding sun above him, hoping for the heat to melt the icy lump in his stomach.

"Man up and get rid of this thing." He tried to encourage himself but it sounded half-hearted at best. He didn't have the guts to do it last night and the longer he thought about it the lesser he wanted to do it. Instead he started to picture himself with Bessie at his side and their little baby girl in the middle of them.

He would have a daughter.

He would be a daddy.

He'd never thought of himself as a daddy. It was a scary thought but on the other hand he was looking forward to it.

But first he would have to talk to Bessie, come clean and hope that she wouldn't yell at him to rip that abnormality out of her body and then to get lost.

While the sun burned down on him Gabriel went through every scenario he could think of of how this could end. Very few had a happy ending but it was either taking the risk and tell Bessie everything or clean up his mess before she noticed that she was pregnant and he couldn't do that.

Gabriel waited until the weekend so Bessie didn't have to go to work right after his confession. This way she would have time to think. And it had nothing to do with stalling, at least that was what he told himself.

On Saturday morning, they had finished breakfast and were done with the dishes, Gabriel summoned up all his courage and said: "Bessie? We need to talk."


	8. Chapter 8

Gabriel had thought about this moment since he'd found out Bessie was pregnant, since he'd miserably failed to clean up his mess. In the end he went for dropping at least one bomb immediately.

They sat at the kitchen table and Gabriel grabbed Bessie's hand.

"Okay. What's going on? You've been weird the last couple of days." She laughed nervously not sure what was coming next, half expecting him to propose to her or to break up with her, that much Gabriel caught from her stream of thoughts.

"You're pregnant."

Caught off guard she blinked at him.

"Shouldn't that be my line?" She finally asked. "You know, if I was pregnant which I'm not by the way."

"You are." His thumb painted circles on the back of her hand. "It's just too early so you don't know it yet."

"O...kay?" She drew the word out as if she wasn't sure if he was joking or insane.

How do I tell her that the child she is carrying isn't human, Gabriel wondered.

"Would you like to have a child?" He asked instead. "A little baby girl?"

Apparently he wasn't the only one who was glad to be on safe terrain for a little while longer.

"I've never really thought about children." She admitted but thought about it for a second. "But, yeah, I'd like to have a child. With you." She smiled at him and it was warm and full of love. Gabriel swallowed thickly and felt like the biggest dick on earth.

"What if ..." He took a breath. Just say it, he encouraged himself. "What if the child would be different?"

Now she looked at him like she'd never seen him before, really looking at him, searching for something. For the difference, he thought.

"What do you mean different?" She let out a nervous laugh. "Something in the family tree?"

"You could say that." Gabriel sighed. Time to come clear, he guessed. "Remember when you said you weren't good with people and I said you could pretend that I just look human but was something different underneath?"

She nodded slowly and drew her hand out of his.

"Well that wasn't just a joke." He folded his hands to make up for the loss but it wasn't the same. She was sitting right next to him and he already missed her.

"Gabriel, what is this all about?" She looked him in the eye and there was still love.

"I'm not human." There he'd said it. "And our baby won't be quite human either."

Bessie tried to hide her reaction but the muscles in her neck stiffened and unconsciously she leaned away from him. Her expression told him that she had settled from joking to insane by now.

"What do you think you are, then?" She asked in a guarded voice and Gabriel just knew it could only go downhill from there.

"If I tell you, you'd think I'm crazy. I'll show you." With a heavy sigh he stood up and positioned himself in the middle of the kitchen with his back to the wall. "Bessie, please. I love you and I'd never hurt you, you know that, right?" He was pleading now and he didn't care.

"Of course I do." She hurried to say and it was the truth, he could see it in her eyes. "You're scaring me here."

Gabriel let his grace flow through him, let it shine through his vessel, his eyes, illuminated himself with the heavenly light. Then he spread his wings.

Bessie made a strangled sound, nearly fell out of the chair and stumbled backwards until she was plastered against the door frame, ready to bolt any second. Her gaze was fixed on him in shock.

Taking pity on her Gabriel ended the show. Now he was just an ordinary guy again. Somebody you wouldn't look twice at if you met him on the street. Just Mr. Cherry.

Not sure what to do next he waited for Bessie to say something, do something.

"What are you?" She finally asked as if she didn't have a pretty good idea already. It wasn't an everyday occurrence that your boyfriend came out as not being human and so far Bessie took it better than he'd expected.

"I'm an angel." Gabriel didn't dare to move, she was still caught between fight or flight. "I won't hurt you."

"An angel." She repeated.

"Could we sit down for this? Please?" Slowly to not spook her Gabriel returned to his chair and set down. After a second she followed suit.

"What do you want from me?" She desperately didn't look at him and she sounded scared. Gabriel took her hand but it felt stiff like a doll's one in his and he let go of her.

"I don't want anything from you." He reassured her and pretended that he didn't notice when she got her hands out of his reach and dropped them in her lap. "All I wanted was some pistachio ice cream. And then I saw you and everything changed."

Hell, if Gabriel knew how he'd ended up in this situation.

"This thing we have ..." For the first time since his little light show she looked him in the eye. "Is it real?"

"You mean if I love you?" Gabriel dared to breathe a little bit easier. "Yes, I love you."

"Why me?" She actually looked puzzled. "I'm nothing special, I'm not pretty, I'm not even a religious person." She spread her hands in a helpless manner. "Why is there an angel sitting at my kitchen table declaring his love to me?"

She breathed out with a laugh which only hold a tiny hint of hysteria.

"You are special." Gabriel tried again to hold her hand and this time she even returned the gesture. "I've never met a woman like you. And for the religious thing, believe me, I'm not that of a religious person myself."

"A not religious angel." This time her laughing was real. "And you got me pregnant? We used protection."

With his free hand Gabriel gave the table a little shove. "The table is still wobbling from the one time we didn't use protection and accidents do happen even with condoms."

She thought about that for a while. "So you're telling me I'm having a little baby angel growing inside me?"

"It's a little bit more complicated."

"How can this become more complicated?"

Gabriel told her. He told her about the Nephilim and the consequences they and their baby girl would have to face. Bessie listened for the most part, only interrupting him with a question here and there. After he'd finished they sat there, both of them lost in their own thoughts.

"What options do we have?" She finally asked and Gabriel's heart jumped at the _we_.

"If you keep the baby I can't stay all the time with you, if you even want me to be still a part of your life that is." Gabriel vocalized his biggest fear. After all this did she even want him in her life anymore? "I can conceal my presence or I can conceal hers but both of us in one place would draw attention sooner or later. But she'll need my help to gain control over her powers, to some point I have to stay in contact with her."

Now it was Bessie who reached out and hold his hand in hers.

"Or I could make it go away." He swallowed because that was the last thing he wanted to do but she needed to know the options. "I can make it go away and you don't have to see me ever again if you don't want to, I'd understand. I could even erase your memory, you don't have to remember any of this if you don't want to."

For a second Bessie just stared at him. Then she leaned forward and kissed him, hold his face in both hands and kissed him deep and sweet.

"I have to think about this." She said when they broke apart. "This is some weird stuff, I'm telling you. But one thing I'm absolutely sure about. I love you and if you've been honest when you said the same to me than I want you in my life as much as I can get. Don't you dare and disappear on me."

Gabriel closed his eyes with a silent _thank you_.

She bit her bottom lip in a lopsided grin. "You say it's a baby girl?"


	9. Chapter 9

That weekend was the longest Gabriel ever had. After their little heart to heart he'd left Bessie to think about everything in peace.

"Just pray for me to come and I'll be there." He'd promised before he'd vanished right from under her nose. Maybe it would help her to wrap her mind around the fact the he really was an angel.

True to his word he left her alone for as long as she needed it and didn't peek on her despite how much he wanted to do just that. She had said she wanted him to be part of her life but that had been in the heat of the moment. Would she think the same after she'd slept over it?

Gabriel tried to distract himself with a little trip to Las Vegas but his mind wasn't on it. Then he sat in the center of a self-created candy-land, ready to blow himself into a sugar coma, but he'd lost his appetite and wasn't that a new one?

And then on Sunday evening he finally heard her prayer.

_Ehm, Gabriel? I'm praying to you to enlighten me with you heavenly presents. God, this is so stupid._

Okay, they'd have to work on that but Gabriel didn't care. Bessie wanted to see him and for a second he wasn't sure if he could face her. What-ifs were swirling through his mind but he'd promised to be there.

"Hallo, Bessie." He said and it hurt just a little bit when she jumped at his sudden appearance.

"Gabriel. I wasn't sure if you'd actually come." With one hand at her chest she tried to calm her rapidly beating heart.

"I promised."

They were in the living room and after some awkward seconds they settled on the couch.

"Before you say anything." Gabriel interrupted her when she opened her mouth to speak. "I want you to know that I'll respect every decision you make."

"There is one thing I want to know first." She blushed like a teenager and Gabriel couldn't help but wonder what kind of embarrassing question was on her mind.

"Ask anything you want."

"Mister Gabriel Cherry." She let the name roll over her tongue and he cringed at the cherry part. Not one of his brighter ideas. "I'd really like to know the name of the man who got me pregnant. It's a society thing, you know. People will talk if I don't even know who put the bun in my oven."

"That's only fair." He chuckled softly, this didn't sound like she was about to kick him out. Quite the opposite, it sounded like she wanted to at least keep the baby. "Okay, Cherry is bullshit, I actually don't have a last name so I had to make something up, but my name really is Gabriel."

"So you were named after the archangel?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Not exactly." Now it was his time to blush. "I kinda am Gabriel the archangel."

"You're kidding me." Her eyes went huge. When he didn't say something for long seconds her eyes went even bigger. "You are not kidding me. Holy christ on toast." She covered her mouth with her hands when she realized what she'd just said. "I'm sorry … I mean … I didn't mean to… crap."

"I like a woman who knows to cuss." He reassured her and she dared to breathe again. "But the archangel thing, I'd prefer if that fact would be our little secret, I'm kinda undercover."

"Okay." She nodded still twisting her fingers. "Not that anybody would believe me, anyway."

"There are people out there who would believe you." Gabriel dared to come closer until he could easily rest a hand on her knee. He felt some of the tension melt out of her. "People who would try to kill me or our baby. If you want to keep the baby, that is." Holding his breath he waited for her response.

"I want the baby." Her hand landed on his and she drew it up to her belly. Bessie couldn't feel anything yet, he knew that, but Gabriel felt the growing life under his hand.

"And I want you." She smiled at him. "How many women can say they've an archangel as their boyfriend?"

"Only you." He kissed her.

***end***

* * *

That's all folks. At least for now. I have ideas for a sequel with Gabriel and his baby girl but don't hold you breath for that.

On Saturday I'm starting something completely different:

**Two Brothers**

Summary: "I didn't expect to see Sam again. For sure I didn't expect him to die on my operation table." NOT a death!fic, sequel to "Fellowship of the Nine".


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